Recap: Blue Jackets 4, Sharks 0

April 09, 2013|Reuters

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Recap: Blue Jackets 4, Sharks 0

Blue Jackets 4, Sharks 0: Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside all 30 shots he faced and Marian Gaborik collected a goal and an assist as host Columbus moved within two points of idle Detroit for eighth place in the Western Conference.

Matt Calvert, Ryan Johansen and defenseman James Wisniewski also scored and veteran Vinny Prospal had an assist in his 1,100th NHL game. Eleven different players notched at least one point for the Blue Jackets, who snapped a two-game losing skid and improved to 10-1-3 in their last 14 home contests.

Antti Niemi yielded four goals on 26 shots before being replaced by Thomas Greiss (four saves) for the Sharks, who are 0-1-1 following a seven-game winning streak. The fifth-place Sharks remain one point ahead of Minnesota - with the Wild hosting Chicago later on Tuesday.

Bobrovsky registered his fourth shutout in 2013 after failing to record one in two seasons with Philadelphia. The 24-year-old Russian's toughest stop arguably came at the hands of T.J. Galiardi, who barreled into him in the second period and was whistled for goaltender interference.

Calvert gave Bobrovsky all the offense he would need at 8:39 of the first period by cleaning up a loose puck on the doorstep following Cam Atkinson's wraparound attempt.

Wisniewski's blast from the high slot doubled the advantage 3:09 into the second and Johansen scored 1:56 later after reeling in a nifty feed from Gaborik before wiring a shot from the slot past Niemi.

Gaborik got in on the scoring at 7:16 of the third period after accepting Artem Anisimov's brilliant feed on the doorstep. The veteran deftly shifted to his backhand before tucking the puck into the net.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Gaborik has collected two goals and three assists in four games since being acquired from the New York Rangers at the trade deadline. ... San Jose C Patrick Marleau had a team-leading four shots on goal. ... Columbus, which skated to a 6-2 win over San Jose on Feb. 11, will visit the Sharks in the finale of the regular-season series on April 21.